It’s time now to discuss the Dallas Cowboys and their ninth overall pick and what they may do with it.

The Cowboys are the one team picking in the Top 10 that should not be here. By all measures, they were a team with Super Bowl aspirations a year ago, and are now picking at the top of the draft. But this type of situation doesn’t have to be that negative, as a similar thing happened to the 2003 Pittsburgh Steelers. They managed to snag Ben Roethlisberger with their eleventh overall pick, and immediately returned to being contenders with a Lombardi trophy two years later.

If the Cowboys play their cards right, a similar thing can happen to them. The right pick can quickly swing the pendulum back upwards for them. And I think the pick that could make that happen is Alabama’s Marcell Dareus.

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Almost done with the top ten picks, it’s time for the Tennessee Titans to get on the clock with the ninth overall pick. Just as a recap, here’s the order to the picks so far. And you can click on the links to read the appropriate articles:

1. Carolina – QB Blaine Gabbert
2. Denver – CB Patrick Peterson
3. Buffalo – QB Cam Newton
4. Cincinnati – DT Nick Fairley
5. Arizona – LB Von Miller
6. Cleveland – DE Da’Quan Bowers
7. San Francisco – DE Robert Quinn

So the Titans are on the clock, with only a few of what I would term to be the “Big 11″ left on the clock. These would be the eleven players that are virtual locks to be selected in the Top 15 picks, but obviously what order they go in is in some dispute. Among those players still left on the board for the Titans to pilfer through are Alabama defensive tackle Marcell Dareus, his teammate Julio Jones, his fellow wideout from Georgia in A.J. Green, and cornerback Prince Amukamara of Nebraska. And it’s likely that the Titans will pick from among those four when they choose eighth overall to get the best player available. And in the end I think that will be A.J. Green. As usual, continue to read on if you want to know why Green will be a Titan instead of other options.

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It’s time for the second primer of today as earlier I posted my thoughts on where the Cleveland Browns will go with the sixth overall pick. It’s time to move on to the San Francisco 49ers at No. 7.

The 49ers are sitting at a point in the draft, where they probably don’t really control their own destiny. Depending on which players go ahead of them will primarily determine which position they address.

But in the end, I think they will settle on a pass rusher such as North Carolina’s Robert Quinn to help solidify their defense.

The 49ers have their fair share of needs, first and foremost is their quarterback position. While new head coach JIm Harbaugh has been praising Alex Smith in recent weeks, the 49ers know that he is not their long-term option. Smith is good enough to keep the seat warm for a year or so for another player, but Harbaugh knows that in order for him to be successful as an NFL coach, he’s going to have to find a stud, young quarterback at some point like his brother did in Joe Flacco in Baltimore.

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Yesterday, there was a double dose of mock draft primers with the Bengals picking DT Nick Fairley and the Cardinals taking LB Von Miller. Today, I’ll bring you both the Browns pick at No. 6 and the 49ers at No. 7. But let’s start with the Cleveland Browns who hold the 6th pick.

The good thing for Cleveland is that new GMs Mike Holmgren and Tom Heckert seem to have the team going in the right direction. QB Colt McCoy was better than most as a rookie. Peyton Hillis had a strong season, their defense performed well anchored by a better than expected linebacking corps and secondary. Despite picking sixth in this year’s draft, there is room for optimism going forward in Cleveland.

And it’ll be key for the Browns to secure the best player with this pick to continue that upward direction. I think they’ll wind up selecting Clemson defensive end Da’Quan Bowers with their top pick.

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Since it’s Saturday, it’s time for a double dose of teams, so I’ve decided to proceed with my assessment of the fifth pick in this year’s draft with the Arizona Cardinals.

If you still haven’t caught up, I’ve explained exactly why the Panthers will take Blaine Gabbert No. 1 overall, the Broncos will think snatch up Patrick Peterson, Buffalo will fall in love with Cam Newton, and earlier today why Cincinnati will settle for Nick Fairley with the first four picks of the 2011 draft.

With the fifth pick, I think the Cardinals will target Texas A&M outside linebacker Von Miller. Again, if that’s all you care about you can stop reading now. But if you care to understand why the Cardinals will go for Miller or which other prospects the Cardinals will look hard at, keep on reading.

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I’ve rattled through three picks so far with Blaine Gabbert, Patrick Peterson, and Cam Newton coming off the board to the Panthers, Broncos, and Bills respectively. Now it’s time to see what the Bengals are going to do with their No. 4 overall pick come April 28.

Luckily for the Bengals, there are still plenty of good players at need positions for them, so they should be okay with this. I think the Bengals will wind up drafting Nick Fairley with the fourth overall pick.

The big question the Bengals have to get an answer to is whether or not Carson Palmer is going to play for them this year. Palmer has already threatened retirement if they don’t trade or cut him this off-season. Bengals owner Mike Brown isn’t the type of guy to give into that request and in this game of chicken, he’s certainly not going to blink first. And unless the CBA is restored (although I must say it’s looking a lot more optimistic than when I began this exercise a few days ago), that’s not going to happen before the draft. So the Bengals could potentially go into this summer not knowing who their starting quarterback is going to be. And if it’s not Carson Palmer, then they don’t have an answer currently on the roster.

And with all that said, they may be tempted to draft a player like Gabbert or Newton if they are available with this pick. Between the two of them, they would probably prefer Gabbert because he’s a bit more NFL ready. But if the Bengals opt to address other issues and hope their quarterback situation works itself out at a later date, they will have plenty of talent to choose from.

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Two teams down, thirty more to go. And now it’s time to move onto the Buffalo Bills, who pick third in the draft with these complete breakdowns of all 32 picks in the first round.

Well the positive spin on the Bills 2010 season is that they weren’t bad enough to pick No. 1 overall. But they still are arguably the team most devoid of quality NFL talent league-wide.

But I think they can make a significant boost to that talent with their selection of Auburn quarterback Cam Newton with their top selection. Keep reading for the full explanation of why they choose Newton.

As they assess their draft needs, the Bills will favor addressing what was the league’s 28th ranked defense as their bigger priority. And their key issue is trying to find ways to pressure the quarterback.

The Bills employed what was mainly a hybrid 3-4/4-3 defense last year. And while they plan to continue to use multiple looks, their GM Buddy Nix has indicated that the team will continue to focus on drafting 3-4 personnel because that’s their long-term plan for their base. With the Panthers nabbing Blaine Gabbert and the Broncos taking Patrick Peterson, that gives the Bills the pick of the litter as far as 3-4 guys are concerned in this draft.

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Congratulations, by now you have probably read or tried to read that very long post yesterday discussing who the Panthers will take with their No. 1 pick this April. If you didn’t, then congratulations go to you as well for you were smart enough to avoid all that reading and will get the very short version right now: the Panthers will take Blaine Gabbert.

Now that means that it is now time to look at the Denver Broncos and their draft needs to see who they will take on the heels of the Panthers selection.

The Broncos are in a contrasting situation as the Panthers, instead needing to really upgrade their defense. It ranked 30th overall in Football Outsiders DVOA-based defensive efficiency ratings last season. And much of that had to do with the fact that they lost Elvis Dumervil before the season to an injury, and their pass rush completely evaporated as they ended their year with only 23 sacks.

It means that the Broncos will likely be looking at any way to beef up their defense with an emphasis on the pass rush with their No. 2 selection.

In the end I think that means they will wind up selecting LSU corner Patrick Peterson with that pick. If you care to understand how I came to that conclusion, continue to read on. And I’ll try to reward your curiosity by not being as long-winded as I was previously.

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Okay, it looks like it’s going to be a long, slow, frustrating off-season for the fans with the looming labor strife. Talk of lockouts, union decertifications, and protracted legal battles leaves me at a loss. Without the possibility of free agency if there is no CBA, then there isn’t going to be the usual player movement and fodder that comes every March as teams try to upgrade their rosters to discuss. It has me focusing more of my attention on the draft, and not just the Falcons and who they will ultimately pick, but potential options for other teams around the league.

And with that in mind, for this entire month every day I will try and post an article discussing what each team is going to do with their first round draft pick, from what potential targets and options they will have, to whether or not they’ll be looking to trade up or down. And there is no better place to start with our division rival Carolina Panthers, who hold the top spot.

In the end, I think the overwhelming evidence suggests that the Panthers will take Missouri quarterback Blaine Gabbert with the top pick. I’ll fully explain my reasoning after the jump, but the short version is that with a new staff coming in and the team needed to establish a foundation for success to compete in the tough NFC South for years to come, quarterback is the only pick that makes sense.

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When I posted a mock two weeks ago, I expected that the next one I would post on the site would wait until after the Combine. But I’ve decided in all my wisdom to do another one before the Combine, but this time I’ve decided to include three rounds instead of one. An asterisk (*) indicates an underclassman.

1. Carolina Panthers – QB Blaine Gabbert, Missouri*
I still think the Panthers will take a quarterback with their top pick, and I think when all is said and done Gabbert will be the pick.

2. Denver Broncos – DE Da’Quan Bowers, Clemson*
With the Broncos move to the 4-3 under John Fox, getting another pass rusher to team with Dumervil will be important.

3. Buffalo Bills – QB Cam Newton, Auburn*
With Fitzpatrick under center, the Bills are one of the teams at the top that can afford to take Newton high in the draft because they won’t be forced to play him right away.

4. Cincinnati Bengals – DT Nick Fairley, Auburn*
While the Bengals need wide receiver help, they can’t pass on a defensive playmaker like Fairley here in the draft.

5. Arizona Cardinals – WR A.J. Green, Georgia*
Green will be a great complement if they keep Fitzgerald, but also a good replacement if they move him.

6. Cleveland Browns – DT Marcell Dareus, Alabama*
With the Browns expected make a switch to the 4-3, getting a force in the middle like Dareus will go a long way.

7. San Francisco 49ers – OLB Von Miller, Texas A&M
The 49ers need some pass rush help, and Miller is considered the premier guy in that realm by many.

8. Tennessee Titans – QB Jake Locker, Washington
The post Vince Young era in Tennessee begins with Jake Locker.

9. Dallas Cowboys – CB Patrick Peterson, LSU*
Jerry Jones can’t pass up an athlete like Peterson to help improve a porous Dallas secondary.

10. Washington Redskins – WR Julio Jones, Alabama*
Whoever is the Redskins new quarterback will appreciate a target like Jones on the outside.

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